The Crisis of Meeting Ineffectiveness Plaguing Most Organizations
“Optimizing meetings remains one of the most underappreciated levers for transformative impact.”
To optimize organizational performance, there must be both a clear division of labor and effective coordination to synthesize efforts and produce results. It sounds straightforward: create well-defined job descriptions and accountabilities, then empower people to execute. The real challenge lies in the interdependencies. My work often relies on data or outputs from others, which is manageable in small companies through simple all-hands meetings. But as organizations scale, so does complexity—and with it, the web of interdependencies, resulting in a proliferation of meetings.
I believe unproductive and poorly run meetings represent the single greatest hidden cost and barrier to superior organizational performance. Yet this issue is rarely confronted head-on. In theory, meetings inform teams, amplify voices, propel progress, foster culture, and drive outcomes. In practice, they meander, consume vast swaths of time, stifle productivity, reinforce silos, and—rather than resolving issues—spawn even more meetings. When problems arise, the default response is often to convene: "Let's gather the key stakeholders in a room (or on a Zoom or Teams call) and hash it out." It seems like a solid plan, but execution frequently falls short. In 2019, I wrote a post, Meeting Request: Let me waste one more hour of your day. The post makes several recommendations for eliminating and improving meetings. At the time, research showed there were roughly 25 million meetings per day in the United States which translated into $37 billion in annual productivity lost as a result of meetings. The figures are six years old and in my estimation the numbers have only increased with virtual work and meetings. These figures were before Zoom and Teams became mainstream tools.
What the Meeting Data Says:
At Groove Management, we conduct workshops to boost meeting effectiveness. Our process begins with a thorough audit of an organization's meeting culture, evaluating frequency and quality. How many meetings does a typical employee attend weekly, and do they deliver meaningful results? Insights from our audits reveal stark realities:
40% of the workweek is spent in meetings.
Only 40% of meetings feel truly valuable.
40% of meetings could have been an email.
These figures are far from ideal. Employees are drowning in meetings, and worse, most aren't yielding the intended impact. When we ask what's hindering better meetings, common culprits emerge:
Leadership behaviors that are difficult to challenge.
Political dynamics that trump structured processes.
Fear of holding peers accountable.
Systems that perpetuate meeting overload.
Conversely, employees consistently cite these elements as hallmarks of effective meetings:
A clear agenda.
A defined purpose.
The right people in the room.
Concrete next steps at the close.
From our audits and experience, the disconnect isn't a lack of knowledge—it's culture. As Igor Gorlatov of Groove Management puts it, "You can't best-practice your way out of culture problems." He adds, "Teams blame culture as if it's external. But they are the culture." To transform meeting culture, organizations must commit to targeted changes: identifying true blockers, focusing on what's controllable, and pledging to actionable shifts.
The Recipe for More Effective Meetings
There is a proven recipe for effective meetings, but like any great dish, it requires personalization. In our workshops, we prompt participants to voice what must evolve. Their top priorities include:
Clear agendas and goals shared in advance.
Defined roles and decision-makers.
Shorter, more focused sessions.
Fewer redundant or update-heavy gatherings.
Dedicated meeting-free blocks for deep work.
This feedback signals strong buy-in: employees spot the inefficiencies and crave a more disciplined, purposeful approach.
Where to Start?
A targeted audit is an excellent launchpad. We've developed a concise survey to diagnose your organization's meeting culture, spotlighting pain points alongside best practices. It sparks essential conversations and lays the groundwork for improvement. As we've seen time and again, enhancing meeting effectiveness can unlock profound gains.
Post-audit, consider partnering with Groove Management for a workshop—whether for a single team or enterprise-wide rollout. We'll collaborate to establish success metrics and guide a structured change initiative, potentially incorporating our "Meeting Crashers" service, where an expert observes a live session to evaluate adherence to new practices.
Organizations have countless paths to unlock hidden potential. In our view, running fewer—but far better—meetings remains one of the most underappreciated levers for transformative impact.
